Longtime SF Giants nemesis makes a great point about division rivalry

This might be hard to believe, but longtime SF Giants nemesis Max Muncy made a great point about the division rivalry. The veteran bat proclaimed that the Giants will always be the Los Angeles Dodgers' only rival.

Longtime SF Giants nemesis makes a great point about division rivalry

Muncy joined the Foul Territory podcast recently, and discussed why the Giants will always be the Dodgers' only rival. He says that teams only have one rival. Muncy brought up the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees as an example of that. Neither team has another rival that matches the intensity when those two teams face off.

The 10-year veteran was asked about what makes a rivalry in the context of the Dodgers' recent heated matchups against the San Diego Padres. Both teams have star talent, and each has a way of getting under the skin of the other. They have even faced off in the playoffs in recent seasons.

However, their rivalry feels manufactured. It will wear off once the players from this era move on and retire.

On the other hand, the Giants and Dodgers' rivalry spans several decades. Both teams originally played in New York and moved to California in the same year, in 1958.

The rivalry went up another level in 1965, when Juan Marichal fought with Dodgers catcher John Roseboro. Roseboro wanted Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax to throw inside to Marichal. When he received the second pitch and threw it back, the ball nearly hit Marichal in the head, leading to a brawl between the two players. This led to the Hall of Fame pitcher striking the Dodgers catcher in the head twice with his bat.

Interestingly, Marichal and Roseboro became friends after the incident. However, the rivalry was further ignited that day.

Since then, Giants and Dodgers games have been must-see TV due in large part to the rivalry that has been formed through decades of animosity. The Dodgers hate the Giants, and vice versa. I even have a bat signed by Jack Clark that says something about the Dodgers that I cannot share on here.

The rivalry continues to thrive because fans on both sides do not like the opposing players. Giants fans have went from booing Tommy Lasorda to Mike Piazza to Yasiel Puig to Max Muncy. Yes, Muncy is among the Giants' least favorite players and that will not change anytime soon. You have to give him credit, he made a great point about the Giants-Dodgers rivalry.